Did Jesus instruct his Jewish listeners and disciples that the Torah, or Jewish law – the first five books of modern Bibles, traditionally attributed to Moses – was rendered irrelevant with his coming? There are certainly no unequivocal statements by Jesus in the gospels that say so. Yet many Christians from ages past until today …
Tag: Jewish followers of Jesus
The Twelve Apostles Part 6: Thaddaeus, Simon, Judas & the Rest
With this post, we complete our historical survey of the lives of the twelve apostles. Here, we discuss the apostles Thaddaeus, Simon, Judas, “and the rest.” Thaddaeus/Lebbaeus/Judas son of James It is possible, though unlikely, that these three names all refer to the same person. Some suggest that the names Thaddaeus and Lebbaeus ultimately …
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The Twelve Apostles, Part 5 – Matthew, Thomas, James
We continue our historical survey of the lives of the twelve apostles. In this post, we discuss the apostles Matthew, Thomas, and James. Matthew The Greek word, Matthaios, from which we derive Matthew, comes from the Semitic Mattiyah meaning “gift of Yahweh.” Beyond that, and the appearance of his name in the lists of …
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The Twelve Apostles, Part 4 – The Hellenists: Andrew, Philip, and Bartholomew
We continue our series of historical investigations into the twelve specially-chosen followers of Jesus with this look at three who bore Hellenist names: Andrew, Philip, and Bartholomew. Andrew Andrew is a Greek name (Andreas = “manly”). All four New Testament gospels (Matt 4:18, 10:2; Mark 1:16; Luke 6:14; John 1:40, 6:8) identity him as …
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The Twelve Apostles, Part 3: The Thunder Brothers, Sons of Zebedee
We continue with our series of historical investigations into the twelve specially-chosen followers of Jesus with this combined look at James and John, the sons of Zebedee. James, son of Zebedee The New Testament features a number of men named James (Greek Iakōbos from the Hebrew Ya’akov or Jacob). Most of what we know …
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The Twelve Apostles Part 2: Simon Peter
We carry on with part 2 of our historical investigation of the Twelve special persons chosen by Jesus to supplement his work. This blog will focus on Simon Peter. “Simon” is the Greek form of the Semitic name Šim`ôn, one of the most common Jewish names known to us from antiquity. It means “Yah(weh) has …
The Twelve Apostles: Who Were They?
In this series of posts, we will explore the history of Jesus’s closest followers as recorded across numerous ancient Christian traditions. Along the way, we will find that these traditions are often confused, contradictory, or seriously lacking in details. Nevertheless, we will attempt to distill all the historical data possible and, at times, risk delving …
Which Gospel Came First?
Getting as close to the historical Jesus as possible has been a preoccupation with biblical scholars since at least the 18th century. Many questions must be asked. For example, which of the Jesus-traditions (sayings and stories) now appearing in the New Testament and elsewhere are the oldest? Which are most likely historical? Which gospel was …
Do You Have to be a Christian to Believe in Jesus’s Resurrection?
The resurrection is the bedrock event that launched a movement based on the belief that Jesus was and continued to be the Messiah of Israel despite his death and that he would soon return. Some suggest that, absent the resurrection event, Christianity would not have begun. The followers of Jesus would have gone their separate …
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Why Did Jesus Attack the Temple Merchants?
One of the most fascinating events in the recorded life of Jesus occurred in Jerusalem and perhaps led to his death. I am referring to his actions in the temple with regard to the animal merchants and money changers. All four gospels report some version of the story in which Jesus drives out these functionaries …
David Christian Clausen 